So there we have it! After missing out on a winning acca a fortnight ago by a single goal, we returned to the winner’s circle immediately with all five legs landing last week.
Crawley Town, Freiburg and Toulouse all did the business for our Double Chance selections, our Under 2.5 Goals bet on Burton vs Nottingham Forest ended in a goalless draw, and Huddersfield just about got over the line with our +2.50 Asian handicap backing.
So this column is bang in form at present: can we double up this week? Let’s find out with our latest football accumulator tips:
- Manchester United vs Chelsea: Under 2.5 Goals (7/10)
- Reading vs Derby County: Derby/Draw Double Chance (21/50)
- Plymouth Argyle vs Bradford City: Plymouth Draw No Bet (8/11)
- Yeovil Town vs Carlisle United: Carlisle/Draw Double Chance (21/50)
- Wigan Athletic vs Rochdale: Under 3.5 Goals (1/3)
- Acca Odds: 7.11/1
Manchester United vs Chelsea: Under 2.5 Goals
Manchester United vs Chelsea has been a fixture with Jose Mourinho’s fingerprints all over it for the past decade, and so it’s no wonder that it’s a game that has been typically tepid.
Just two of the last twelve meetings between these sides have gone over the 2.5 line, and with both involved in high profile Champions League games in midweek there might be some weary limbs around.
Mourinho will park the bus here: his personal pride overrides what’s best for his team in these matches, while Antonio Conte has typically played a more conservative 3-5-1-1 system against elite opposition.
There is a lot at stake here, and we simply don’t envisage this game turning into a barn-burner.
Reading vs Derby County: Derby/Draw Double Chance
Jaap Stam is just about doing enough to hold onto his job at Reading, but his side’s form does little to inspire confidence.
One win in eleven tells its own story, and home defeats against the likes of Burton, Birmingham and Millwall recently suggest we don’t have to fear betting against the Royals on their own patch.
Derby’s 0-2 loss at Sheffield Wednesday last time out came as something of a surprise, but the general consensus of all watching on was that the Rams were rather unlucky to leave Hillsborough empty-handed.
The fact that this was their first league defeat since November cannot go overlooked, and indeed it appears as if Gary Rowett has finally got his side moving in the right direction. They have promotion in mind….Reading have rather less grandiose concerns to think about.
Plymouth Argyle vs Bradford City: Plymouth Draw No Bet
Sports betting is often about following in heaters: those in-form sorts that show no sign of slowing down.
There aren’t many teams in the land in better nick than Plymouth; the Pilgrims have won five on the spin in League One, netting eleven times in the process.
Bradford, meanwhile, haven’t won since New Years Day: that’s an eight-game stretch ago. Quite how the bookmakers see Plymouth as a mere 11/8 shot here is questionable, but we’ll take the added comfort of the Draw No Bet kicker.
Yeovil Town vs Carlisle United: Carlisle/Draw Double Chance
Yeovil play in the EFL Trophy semi-final next Tuesday, meaning they are just 90 minutes away from a day out at Wembley.
Will that affect the psychology of the players ahead of Saturday’s game with Carlisle? You’d certainly expect so.
The Cumbrians have been in decent nick of late, beating Chesterfield and Barnet in the past few days, and they lie just seven points off the play-offs.
It’s a long old trek from Carlisle to Yeovil, but don’t expect the visitors to be put off: they’ve won five of their last six matches at Huish Park!
Wigan Athletic vs Rochdale: Under 3.5 Goals
It’s been a busy old week for these two teams. On Monday night Wigan claimed one of the best wins in their history – the 1-0 triumph over Manchester City propelling them into the last eight of the FA Cup.
That win came at a price though: influential midfielder Nick Powell hobbled off with an injury that will hamper the Latics’ attacking work.
The plus side for them is that 12 of their 18 clean sheets this season have come on home soil, plus they kept out the mega-bucks Man City attack as well, and so we don’t really fancy Rochdale’s chances of breaching the hosts’ defence.
The Dale’s superb 2-2 draw with Tottenham on Sunday means they will have a replay at Wembley in midweek, and you can forgive their players for having their minds on that one. Wednesday’s outing against MK Dons will ensure there is some tired legs in the camp too.